Related Social-Philosophical Views
Pragmatism is a world philosophy which is based on change, process, and
relativity. It conceived of knowledge as a process in which reality is constantly
changing. It assumes that learning occurs as the person engages in problem-
solving which is transferable to a wide variety of subjects and situations. Both
the learners and the environment are constantly changing.
Pragmatists reject the idea of unchanging universal truths. Truth is relative and
knowledge must be the result of testing and verification. To them, teaching
should focus on critical thinking, teaching is exploratory rather than explanatory
and method is more important than subject matter
Progressivism is an educational philosophy whose main philosophical base is
found in Pragmatism. For Progressivism, the aim of education is to promote
democratic social living. It believes that knowledge must lead to growth and
development; it is a living-learning process. Knowledge must focus on active
and relevant learning. The role of the teacher is guide for problem solving and
scientific inquiry. Its curriculum is based on students’ interests; addresses
human problems and affairs; interdisciplinary subject matter; and on activities
and projects.
John Dewey, the great educational pragmatist and a major proponent of
progressivism, viewed education as a process for improving human condition.
He saw schools as specialized
environments within the larger social environment. Curriculum is based on a
child’s experiences and interests and prepared the child for life’s affairs. Subject
matter was inter-disciplinary. Dewey emphasized problem-solving and scientific
method.
Social Reconstructionism’s aim is to improve and reconstruct society.
Education is for change and social reforms. Knowledge focus on skills and
subjects needed to identify and ameliorate society’s problems. It requires active
learning that is concerned with contemporary and future society. The role of the
teacher is to serve as an agent of change and reform. Teachers help students
become aware of problems confronting humankind. The curriculum is focused
on social sciences and social research methods, the examination of social-
economic and political problems.
Paolo Freire’s Philosophy. The Pedagogy of the Oppressed.
Believed that education should enlighten the masses about their oppression,
prompt them to feel dissatisfied with their condition and give them the
competencies necessary for correcting the identified inequities. For Freire (in
Maningas, 2016), education is a tool by which people could learn more about
their capacity as human beings – to enhance the knowledge that they already
have, (p.218).
Jurgen Habermas’ Philosophy. Emphasizes that education’s goal is
emancipation of the awareness, competencies, and attitudes that people need to
take control of their lives. In this view educated people do not follow social
conventions without reflection.
Theodore Brameld argued that social reconstructionists were committed to
facilitating the emergence of a new culture; believed that schools should help
students develop into social
beings dedicated to the common good.
George Counts believed that society must be totally reorganized
to promote the common good.
Harold Rugg believed that schools should engage children in critical analysis
of society in order to improve it.
Alvin Toffler (1970, in Llagas, Corpuz, & Bilbao, 2016, p.1) predicted in his
book Future Shock that the prime objective of education must be to increase the
individuals’ cope-ability – the speed and economy with which individuals can
adapt to continual change. In 1980, he surmised in the Third Wave that the
electronic cottage will become the norm of the future…there will be a
transformation of our technological system and our energy base into a new
techno sphere.
In the 21st Century, the most basic of all raw materials will be knowledge and
that education will require a proliferation of new channels and an emerging
connection between education and global competitiveness. There will be a
universalization of access to computer, information technology, and advanced
media, (Toffler, in Llagas, et.al., 2016, p.1).
John Naisbitt
The trends shaping the 80’s are shifts from industrial to information society,
from national economy to world economy, from hierarchies to networking, and
from centralization to
decentralization. In Megatrends 2000, Naisbitt described the year as “…
operating like a powerful magnet on humanity, reaching down into the 1990’s
and intensifying the decade. It is simplifying emotions, accelerating change,
heightening awareness and compelling us to reexamine ourselves, our values,
and our institutions.
